Dallas County Health and Human Services on Wednesday will begin to offer the H1N1 vaccine to the public — specifically to high-risk people who are prioritized to receive the vaccine — at local pharmacies.
The agency decided to partner with area pharmacies because the vaccines had been difficult for county residents to acquire, county health officials said. Generally the shots are available at county public health clinics and hospitals, but not at more convenient public venues, such as local pharmacies.
"A total of 16,000 doses of the vaccine have been allocated to pharmacies to make it more accessible to those residents who have been unable to find it elsewhere," the county health department said in a statement.
Pharmacies may charge a fee for administering the vaccine, but the county has encouraged pharmacies to not turn people away based on inability to pay.
The list of participating pharmacies and locations will be posted on the county's Web site. The public should contact the pharmacies directly for other information, such as cost, vaccination age ranges and hours of operation.
"This partnership allows Dallas County Health and Human Services to better serve the public by making the vaccine more available," said DCHHS Director Zachary Thompson in a statement.
The county health department will continue to serve as "the safety net resource for those who are unable to afford the cost of the vaccine at these pharmacy locations," Thompson said.
For instance, the county health department also will be offering H1N1 vaccinations free to the public during two upcoming Saturday clinics off-site at community locations by appointment only.
The first clinic will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 21 at the Antioch Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church, 7550 South Hampton Road in Dallas. The second H1N1 clinic will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 5 at St. Barnabas Presbyterian Church, 1220 W. Belt Line Road in Richardson.
To receive the vaccine, the recipients must be Dallas County residents who are in the five priority groups outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said DCHHS Medical Director Dr. John Carlo in a statement.
Priority groups for the 2009 H1N1 vaccine include: pregnant women, people who live with or care for children younger than 6 months old, health care and emergency medical services personnel, persons between the ages of 6 months and 24 years old and people ages of 25 through 64 years of age who are at higher risk because of chronic health disorders or compromised immune systems.
Participation in the partnership with DCHHS was voluntary, and this early allocation will not affect previous orders placed by the pharmacies with the state for the vaccine, county officials said.
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